Basis of Presentation and Principles of Consolidation (Policies)	3 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2017
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required for complete financial statements. In the opinion of our management, these condensed consolidated financial statements contain all normal recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of the Company’s financial position at July 31, 2017, results of operations for the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016 and cash flows for the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016. The Company’s results for the three months ended July 31, 2017 are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full year. You should read these statements in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and management’s discussion and analysis and results of operations included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2017 (the “Annual Report”). The preparation of these financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities, at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Note 1 in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2017 contained in the Annual Report describes the significant accounting policies that we have used in preparing our financial statements. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates, including but not limited to those related to revenue/collectability, bad debts, capitalized software costs, goodwill, intangible assets impairment, stock-based compensation, income taxes and contingencies. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Our actual results could differ materially from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
Principles of Consolidation	Principles of Consolidation The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of American Software, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries (“American Software” or the “Company”). All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Revenue Recognition	Revenue Recognition We recognize revenue in accordance with the Software Revenue Recognition Topic of the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification. *License. We recognize license revenue in connection with license agreements for standard proprietary software upon delivery of the software, provided we consider collection to be probable, the fee is fixed or determinable, there is evidence of an arrangement, and VSOE exists with respect to any undelivered elements of the arrangement. For multiple-element arrangements, we recognize revenue under the residual method, whereby: (1) the total fair value of the undelivered elements, as indicated by VSOE, is deferred and subsequently recognized and (2) the difference between the total arrangement fee and the amount deferred for the undelivered elements is recognized as revenue related to the delivered elements. We record revenues from sales of third-party products in accordance with Principal Agent Considerations within the Revenue Recognition Topic of the FASB’s Accounting Standards Codification. Furthermore, we evaluate sales through our indirect channel on a case-by-case basis to determine whether the transaction should be recorded gross or net, including but not limited to assessing whether or not we: (1) act as principal in the transaction, (2) take title to the products, (3) have risks and rewards of ownership, such as the risk of loss for collection, delivery, or returns, and (4) act as an agent or broker with compensation on a commission or fee basis. In most cases, we record our sales through the Demand Management, Inc. (“DMI”) channel on a gross basis. Maintenance. Revenue derived from maintenance contracts primarily includes telephone consulting, product updates, and releases of new versions of products previously purchased by the customer, as well as error reporting and correction services. Maintenance contracts are typically sold for a separate fee with initial contractual periods ranging from one to three years with renewal for additional periods thereafter. Maintenance fees are generally billed annually in advance. We recognize maintenance revenue ratably over the term of the maintenance agreement. In situations where we bundle all or a portion of the maintenance fee with the license fee, VSOE for maintenance is determined based on prices when sold separately. Services. Revenue derived from services primarily includes consulting, implementation, and training. We primarily bill fees under time and materials arrangements and recognize them as we perform the services. In accordance with the other presentation matters within the Revenue Recognition Topic of the FASB’s Accounting Standards Codification, we recognize amounts received for reimbursement of travel and other out-of-pocket expenses incurred as revenue in the condensed consolidated statements of operations under services and other. These amounts totaled approximately $525,000 and $632,000 for the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) revenues include fees for the right to use the software for a limited period of time in a hosted environment by the Company or by a third party and the customer accesses and uses the software on an as-needed basis over the Internet or via a dedicated line; however, the customer has no ability to take delivery of the software. The underlying arrangements typically include a single fee for the service that is billed monthly, quarterly or annually. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) revenues are recognized ratably over the subscription (which is included in Services Revenue) over the committed services period once the services commence. Indirect Channel Revenue. We recognize revenues for sales made through indirect channels principally when the distributor makes the sale to an end-user, the license fee is fixed or determinable, the license fee is nonrefundable, and the sale meets all other conditions for revenue recognition. Deferred Revenue. Deferred revenue represents advance payments or billings for software licenses, services, and maintenance billed in advance of the time revenue is recognized. Sales Taxes. We account for sales taxes collected from customers on a net basis. Unbilled Accounts Receivable*. The unbilled receivable balance consists of amounts generated from license fee and services revenues. At July 31, 2017 and April 30, 2017, unbilled license fees were approximately $0.3 million and $1.0 million, respectively, and unbilled services revenues were approximately $2.1 million and $1.8 million, respectively. Unbilled license fee accounts receivable represents revenue that has been recognized, but under the terms of the license agreement, which include specified payment terms that are considered normal and customary, certain payments have not yet been invoiced to the customers. Unbilled services revenues primarily occur due to the timing of the respective billings, which occur subsequent to the end of each reporting period.
Earnings Per Common Share	We have two classes of common stock: Class A Common Shares and Class B Common Shares. Our Class B Common Shares are convertible into Class A Common Shares at any time, on a one-for-one basis. Under our Articles of Incorporation, if we declare dividends, holders of Class A Common Shares shall receive a $0.05 dividend per share prior to the Class B Common Shares receiving any dividend and holders of Class A Common Shares shall receive a dividend at least equal to Class B Common Shares dividends on a per share basis. As a result, we have computed the earnings per share in accordance with Earnings Per Share within the Presentation Topic of the FASB’s Accounting Standards Codification, which requires companies that have multiple classes of equity securities to use the “two-class” method in computing earnings per share. For our basic earnings per share calculation, we use the “two-class” method. Basic earnings per share are calculated by dividing net earnings attributable to each class of common stock by the weighted average number of shares outstanding. All undistributed earnings are allocated evenly between Class A and B Common Shares in the earnings per share calculation to the extent that earnings equal or exceed $0.05 per share. This allocation is based on management’s judgment after considering the dividend rights of the two classes of common stock, the control of the Class B shareholders and the convertibility rights of the Class B Common Shares to Class A Common Shares. The calculation of diluted earnings per share is similar to the calculation of basic earnings per share, except that the calculation includes the dilutive effect of the assumed exercise of options issuable under our stock incentive plans. For our diluted earnings per share calculation for Class A Common Shares, we use the “if-converted” method. This calculation assumes that all Class B Common Shares are converted into Class A Common Shares (if antidilutive) and, as a result, assumes there are no holders of Class B Common Shares to participate in undistributed earnings. For our diluted earnings per share calculation for Class B Common Shares, we use the “two-class” method. This calculation does not assume that all Class B Common Shares are converted into Class A Common Shares. In addition, this method assumes the dilutive effect if Class A stock options were converted to Class A Common Shares and the undistributed earnings are allocated evenly to both Class A and B Common Shares including Class A Common Shares issued pursuant to those converted stock options. This allocation is based on management’s judgment after considering the dividend rights of the two classes of common stock, the control of the Class B shareholders and the convertibility rights of the Class B Common Shares into Class A Common Shares.